Judika Illes’s Blog

Here’s my schedule for PantheaCon 2017, which will be held at the DoubleTree Hotel in San Jose, California. In addition to my own events, I’ll be co-hosting the Weiser Books Hospitality Suite (Room 1066). We have all sorts of fun … Continue reading →

Trick or treat? Trick AND treat! Judika is returning to Raleigh’s The Holy Rose for a weekend in the witching month of October. Two classes are being offered (in addition to some other treats!) — one class focuses on how … Continue reading →

Defense Against the Dark Arts at Magickal Realms in the Bronx Sunday, August 21st at 2:00 pm Hexes, curses, the Evil Eye! Jinxes, tricks, and plain old mean people! The world is filled with dangers that the educated spell-caster knows … Continue reading →

A Workshop with Author Judika Illes at Mirabai Books in Woodstock, NY Sunday, July 17, 2016 from 2:00-5:00 pm Magic spells exist for many purposes and goals, but, in short, they are intended to improve your life. Spells are cast … Continue reading →

There are goddesses associated with new moons and goddesses associated with full moons. The popular sacred triad of Maiden, Mother, Crone is based on the rhythmic and visible cycle of waxing moon, full moon, and waning moon. This is not … Continue reading →

August 2, 2015: A Workshop with author Judika Illes at The Holy Rose in Raleigh The mystic arts of spell-casting are intended to serve very practical purposes. Forget Charmed’s old assertions about not casting spells for personal gain: the ancient … Continue reading →

There are goddesses associated with new moons and goddesses associated with full moons. There are magic spells associated with the waxing moon, for example spells to increase fertility, cash flow, or hair growth. There are also spells associated with the … Continue reading →

In fulfillment of a vow, we have available for sale two heavily embellished fourteen day candles for Saint Martha. The image used is the one traditionally found on botanica candles, but we have given Martha the full glamour treatment, as … Continue reading →

Seek a witch and find her living in solitude in the wild forest. We all know that old stereotype and, yes, it contains a grain of truth. As many of us know, however, there’s another side to that story. Witches … Continue reading →

Friday night, October 31, 2014, I will be at the annual Witches’ Cotillion Charity Ball at the Riverview Ballroom in Hudson, Massachusetts, 38 miles west of Boston. This year’s charity is CaRMaH (Cat Adoption and Rescue of Marlboro and Hudson). … Continue reading →

Brick-and-mortar metaphysical shops are currently an endangered species. They are outposts for those who seek magical communities, as well as esoteric books, supplies, and materials. Not least, these stores provide the means for writers of books on the magical arts … Continue reading →

February 1st is Imbolc, a festival of new beginnings. It’s also the birthday of the beloved goddess, Brigid. Brigid presides over healing, fertility, childbirth, ironworking and smithcraft, art, music, poetry, and prophesy. She has dominion over wisdom, education, and knowledge. … Continue reading →

Presenting the first in a series of limited-edition magical items from Judika Illes, author of The Encyclopedia of 5000 Spells, The Encyclopedia of Mystics, Saints, and Sages and other books. Items are truly limited editions—-they are crafted in very small … Continue reading →

I don’t like beer. I don’t like ale. It’s just a personal taste thing. Sometimes, however, I wish I did like ale, because what I really do like are the packaging and graphics on ale bottles, especially in October. In … Continue reading →

Sponsored by Brid’s Closet at Palaia Vineyards Join Judika for a fun-filled day at Palaia Vineyards in Highland Mills, New York on Saturday, May 5th. Doors open at 9am. Judika will be offering readings and will have books available for … Continue reading →

The 2012 Occult Conference was held on Saturday, 17 March at the George and Pilgrim Hotel and Pub in Glastonbury. The George and Pilgrim, the oldest purpose-built public house in southwest England, was originally constructed in the 1400s to accommodate … Continue reading →

The root of ‘divination’ is in the divine. Once upon a time, in the ancient world, it was not unusual to find divinatory services offered at temples and shrines. In other words, to put it plainly, you could expect to … Continue reading →

As discussed in the Encyclopedia of Spirits, it is not uncommon for manufacturers to incorporate the sacred into their wares. Products are frequently named after saints or spirits, while mystical images are featured on many labels. This is particularly true of … Continue reading →

WARNING! SPOILER ALERT Although I have not revealed the ending, it is impossible to discuss the magical and paranormal themes in The Heirloom without also discussing plot points. If you are bothered by spoilers, you may wish to watch the … Continue reading →

In the beginning was the word . . . and the word soon became a spell. If you travel around the world, from urban centers to the most remote regions, searching for shared human common denominators, you will discover the … Continue reading →

The 2012 Occult conference will take place on Saturday 17th of March. We’ve taken over the George and Pilgrim pub one of this countries most historic Inns. This conference will be like NOTHING we’ve ever done before. We’ll obviously have … Continue reading →

The first seven officially acknowledged Christian missionaries to arrive in Brittany are categorized together as the Seven Founder Saints. What these Celtic monks from Britain founded was the Church. Although each saint is also venerated independently, they are invoked together as a group, especially as part of a traditional Breton pilgrimage ritual.

Clay remains one of the most mysterious—and underestimated—spiritual and medicinal mediums, despite the fact that it ranks among the very oldest magical, therapeutic, ritual, and cosmetic ingredients. Its use dates back to prehistoric times. Similar to crystals, there are a wide variety of clays, each possessing its own unique properties. In other words, not all clay is the same. Just as different crystals have distinctive magical and therapeutic uses, so does clay.

Although many people associate rosaries almost exclusively with Catholicism, in fact, the tradition of praying with beads extends to many spiritual traditions. Marisa Young, Santera and priest of Yemaya, is the creative genius behind Boveda Beads, a company that offers spiritually powerful jewelry and rosaries dedicated to Orishas. It is my pleasure to interview Marisa about Orisha rosaries, Boveda Beads, her own spiritual journey and more.

Now renowned as among the most famous stigmatics, the mystic visionary Maria Von Morl (15 October 1812-11 January 1868) was born, lived, and died in the village of Kaltern in southern Tyrolia in northern Italy.

Because of the saint’s association with prostitutes, the name Magdalen or Magdalene evolved into a code word designating a “fallen woman.” So-called “Magdalene Asylums” were first founded in the late 18th century with the stated goal of redeeming and reforming prostitutes. Given alternative employment, imprisoned women were expected to repent for their sins via combined hard work and prayer. (These imprisoned women were also sometimes called “Daughters of Saint Margaret”—another saint associated with fallen women.)

John Paul II (May 18, 1920-April 2, 2005) was pope from 1978 until his death, giving him the second lengthiest reign of any pope. (The record-holder for longest confirmed reign is Pope Pius IX who served from 1846-1878) John Paul does, however, hold the record for canonizing more saints than any other pope. So it was perhaps no surprise that, upon his death, there were calls for his own immediate canonization.

I am a person of many loves and passions, among them the tarot and the Hawaiian islands. These loves are shared by artist Katalin Csikos. Also like me, Katalin has roots in Hungary. Katalin has expressed her passion for Hawaii—its history, land, people, and traditional spirituality—through her creation of HazelMoon’s Hawaiian Tarot. I conducted this interview with her in 2011.

It was not until 1999 that the Italian wolf (Canis lupus italicus) was recognized as a distinct sub-species of the wolf family, following extensive scientific studies that determined that no more than 240 wolves survived in the wild in Italy. (There are also Italian wolf populations in France and Switzerland.) Protection and conservation have encouraged the population to increase: as of November 2010, it is estimated that Italy has approximately 600 wild wolves. Although their numbers have improved, they are still an endangered species.

Saint Bonnet served as chancellor to King Sigebert III of Austrasia, the northeastern portion of the kingdom of the Merovingian Franks. In 667, Bonnet was appointed Governor of Marseilles and in 689 he was made Bishop of Clermont, in what is now modern France. He spent his last years living as a hermit in the Benedictine abbey at Clermont and died in Lyons while returning from a pilgrimage to Rome.

Although there was a historical Bonnet, the saint is also syncretized to the popular Gaulish deity Belenus. Locations in France re-named in honor of Saint Bonnet often mask ancient veneration to Belenus. Saint Bonnet is among those saints whose image often appears in the company of Black Madonnas.